The Picnic, Mar 29, 2009

After months of planning finally on Mar 29, 2009 we convened successful at Hutan Lipur Lentang for our first Gathering of cousins. First cousins being us and second cousins for our children. It was all in the effort to get the clan of Aki Nasib closer and together. Everyone had a good time and it left to Allah to decide for us to stop, pack and go our separate ways. Actually, as if everyone was trying to delay their departure, continued to talk and keep on taking pictures of each other. Of course the plan to play Layang Layang in Selayang that did not materialize for me. The next one was said to be during the next school holidays in PD. We will see and the planning has to start now.

Sam woke up at 0500 to start cooking for the day and I accompanied her by sleeping next to Mar down in our living room. At 0660 though I was up quickly to get ready.and dealt with the final details of our preparation. All except for Kakcik were up after my first wake up drill. By 0705 I was already in the Ranger with engine running ready to roll but we were still waiting for Kakcik to come out. At around 0716 we left the house only to stop for awhile at our neighbor’s house to collect the kueh Sam ordered. Whatever it is I just knew I could still make it to the Gombak tol plaza before 0800 which we did. As I was approaching Gombak I received a text message from hawa stating that she overslept and was just about to get readied. I called Lan and was informed that he was just getting ready to leave. (the day after I was told Lan actually went to Janda Baik searching for us. Hawau! Lentang pun tak tahu kat mana ke?) Since I was trying to make sure we get a good picnic spot I told him I was not going to wait for anybody and proceeded towards Lentang. In few minutes we were there already and we straight away set camp at the most logical and strategic place for us. We really took our own time to set the whole thing anticipating the eminent arrival of the rest. However, after all done no one showed up yet so we started with our breakfast. Ghazi and Baqir started the fire for the BBQ. Having had our breakfast still no sign of my cousins, with Mar’s continuous pestering, we jumped into the cold water. It was very cold initially but once we were in the water it was very pleasant. We bathe and made a nuisance of ourselves in the water. Once in a while I popped up my head looking over the back wandering what had happened to my cousins. Most probably, despite what they told me before, they were really late or they were unthinkably lost. Whatever the reasons both were not funny to me )). If it was the first I can understand as I knew my cousins if it was the second, for their own sake, I said to myself, better be not this or their heads will get chopped off. Lentang is on the ways home to our kampong.

I though I saw a familiar BMW went up the road further in but I thought could be somebody else. Then I saw Mazli had his car parked next to the restroom and I saw his family using it. Using both of my hands I blow the kampong boy’s sounding sound to alert him. Depsite my loudest effort he did not hear me. As a last effort before he drove up as well I yelled my loudest army command voice and he turned to look at me. Only then he located us. He yelled back that Abang Hassan was waiting up the waterfall and he would go up to get them.

Eventually everybody arrived Lan being the last. The day after Hawa told me Lan actually went straying to Janda Baik first. Natural family gets together happened instantly. Our children in the water, the mums talking animatedly and the fathers either looking after their children or like me alternating between my BBQ duty and dipping in the cold water. It was just about enjoying our selves to reconnect to one another. JJ, Lan’s eldest son, brought along a guitar and Mazli started to play the old numbers which of course brought back our early memories. He actually played a few tunes that he attributed to me. One of the songs was ‘This Magic Changes’. I can’t remember the original singer but it was made famous and sang by Sha Na Na in Grease: the Movie. Suddenly all of us became nostalgic and reconnecting with not only one another but with old time experience became the order of the day. We joked, we laughed and we ate. Had not for the rain we would have been there until late in the evening.

Of course it was still early when we left Lan and Mazli suggested we main layang-layang in Selayang but due to the rain on the way home I did not join them.

A successful first outing and could not wait for the next one. Go here for pictures